Welt and method of making.



H. LYON.

WELT AND METHOD 0F MAKING.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. I2. 1918.

Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

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, UNITED srAfrEs PATENT cierren.I

HARRYZLKYON, OF BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGN'OR TO JHN A. BARBOUR AND PERLEY IBARBOUIB., BOTH OF BROCKTONQ MASSACHUSETTS, DOING BUSINESS 'UNDER THE FIRM-NAME AND STYLE 0F BROCKTON RAND COMPANY.-

To all whom t may concer/n: Be it known that I, HARRY LYON, a citi- 4 zen of the United States, residing at *Broeke ton, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements inWelts and Methods of- Making, of which the following is a speciication.

The present invention has reference' 'to welting for use in the manufacture of boots and shoes; and its object is to produce welts which are formed at one'edge with a contour adapted to lit closely theA space on the bottom of a partly finished shoe in which. the welt is laid in the courseof manufacture of the shoe, and to accomplish this result in a manner which effects ya substantial saving of leather (or other material out of which the welting may be made). Ordinarilywelts are made from high grade leather, of which -the supply is limited and the costA high,

wherefore'any material saving in the amount of leather used in producing the welt is important from the standpoints of both conof such machine in the required manner andvl position without crumpling att-he edge.

an application for Letters Patent of the United States filed by me August 29, 1918,

SerialjNumber 251,886, a method.. of producing twowelts from a strip of leather, or

,other material, by cutting the strip lengthwise with an angular cut which forms a V- shaped continuous lengthwise rib or salient angle at the edge of one welt, and a complemental V-shaped continuous lengthwise groove or rentrant angle in the edge of the other welt.- While that method results in the desired saving of leather, and-both the welts produced thereby fromthe samestrip I WELT AND nn'rnon or MAKING.

Specification of Letters Patent." Application mea october 12, 191s. seria; No. 257,975.

I have already invented, and disclosed in Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

are successfully operative; yet the welt which has the V-shaped groove in its edge 1s specifically unlike the other in appearance and 1s' less firm at the edge.4 In comparison with my said previous invention, the purpose and object of the present invention may be said to be the production from a strlp, with equal saving of material, of two welts which are Vspeniically alike. and of which each has the fullest necessary degree of firmness at the edge which lies in the angle between the stitch-receivin rib and bottom of the shoe, and of whic ,the coaction with the welt guide of the inseamstitching machine determines the location of the welt. This object is accomplished by .cutting the strip in such wise that each of the Atwo welts4 derived therefrom has at the dividing edge alternate longitudinally eX- Vtending V-,shaped ribs and grooves or recesses -of limited -lengthwise extent, which are like but complemental to the grooves or recesses and ribs, respectively, of the other; as more fully explained in the following specification, with reference to the drawings, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings which formpart of this application,

Figure l is a plan view on an` enlarged scale of a portionof a stri to be subdivided by cutting according to t e present invention into two welts. Figs. 2 and 3 are cross sections on the lines 2-2 and 3 3, respectively, of Fig. 1. Each of these three lig- .ures .showsthe cutting lines on which the strip is divided. Figs. 4 and 5 are perspec tive views of the resulting welts. Fig. 6 is a cross-section of a lasted shoe bottom, showing my novel welt attached by the inseam to the innersole and upper leather ofl the shoe.

The same reference -characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

As-in myprior application hereinbefore. identified, the method startswith the provision ofa strip 'a having a width somewhat less than twice the over-all width of each welt required to be made therefrom. This strip is then subdivided, by cuts of proper character, into the welts b and c. The character ofthe cuts thus subdividing the strips is shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. They may be described as consisting of incisions of limited length running longitudinally of the strip and extending from the opposite broad faces of the strip and on opposite inclinations from points directly opposite to one another; such incisions being repeatedly alternated with others made on respectively opposite inclinations in contiguous succession throughout the length of the strip. For further explanation of this description reference is made first to the section shown in Fig. 2. Here the incisions referred to are represented as (l and c, the former of which extends on a downward slant to t-he left froln the line lf, of limited length, in the upper broad face g of the strip; and the other of which extends on an upwardslant to the left from the under broad face lt of the strip, which it intersects in a line directly opposite to the line f and of equal extent therewith. Both in cisionsnrun longitudinally of the strip and are approximately midway between its side edges, so that they cross 'the longitudinal vertical median plane of the strip. Preferably also the two incisions are on equal although opposite inclinations, which may be an angle of 45, or a somewhat reater or less angle, whereby there is formed; in the ed e of the resulting strip Z) a symmetrical -shaped groove z', and in' the complemental edge of the Welt c a symmetrical V-shaped rib Next to the incisions thus described, and at each end thereof, other incisions Z and m are made, one pair of which is shown in Fig. 3. These incisions are similar to those designated d and e, but are oppositely arranged, the incision Z running downward to the right from the line n in the upper face g of the strip, and the incision m running upward and to the right from a line directly opposite in the under face of the strip. These last named incisions are located approximately midway between the bounding edges of the strip, and preferably are in all respects like the incisions of the first pair except for their respectively oppo-v site directions of inclination. They produce a symmetrical V-shaped rib o on the edge of the welt b and a complemental symmetrical V-shaped groove p in the edge of the welt c.

Thus the whole length of the strip is cut by incisions adjoining one another longitudinally, in pairs which are directed alternately oppositely .to one another, the end of each pair of incisions adjoining the ends of the next pair. The severance of the welts is completed by cutting transverse incisions 'r' between the adjoining ends of longitudinal incisions. When a series of these cutsv running the whole length of the strip has been completed, each face of the strip exhibits lines f, f, f of short extent 'but in alinement, alternating with other lines n, n, n also of short length and in an ahnement parallel thereto, and transverse cuts r, r, 1', r. Preferably all of the longitudinal lines f, f and r1/,fn are equalin length. The strip is now divided into two parts, which, being separated, form welts having the appearance shown in Figs. 4 and 5. 7o One of these welts as b shows in the cut edge grooves z and ribs o in repeated alternation, while the other welt exhibits at one edge ribs lo and grooves p in repeated alternation, the ribs of each welt being vcomplemental :to and matching with the grooves of the other welt. The llps or wings s and t which flank and bound the grooves in the respective welts are carried out to more or less line edges and are adapted to be bent toward the central plane of the welt; and when so brought together they are in substantial alinement and in continuation of the ribs o and c, respectively. They may be thus brought together and secured by adhesive before the weltV is put to use, and in that case each finished welt presents a substantially V-shaped rib running its entire length at one'edge; but in any event such wings are automatically brought together in the operation of applying the welt to the shoe and stitching the inseam; and after being stitched, the welt has practically the effect of a continuous uninterrupted rib. Without limiting myself to any specific method of forming the cuts hereinbefore described, or any particular machine to be used in makingthem, I may state that T propose to practise my invention commercially with the aid of a machine having suitable provisions for intermittently feeding the strip which is to be subdivided into two welts as described, and having also chisellike slitting knives arranged in pairs above and below the pathway of the strip, with operating means therefor; the knives of one pair being arranged to make the cuts such as areherein designated d and e, andthose of the other pair to make the cuts l and m.

Before being separated into welts as described, the strip may be grooved longitudinally -on the iesh side as shownv at fw and v in Figs. 2 and 3 and the incisions afterward anade between the locations of these grooves. Such grooves serve as ehan- 1.15 nels in which to lay the stitches of the inseam and provide anchoring shoulders for such stitches. These stitch grooves are located at such distances from the cut edges of the welts as to leave enough material for strength; while the original strip a is made wide enough to provide the required out# ward extension of the welt from the groove. Fig. 6 shows in cross section substantially the manner in which a welt made according to this invention is applied to a lasted shoe in the course of manufacture. It may be assumed .for the purpose of explanation that the welt so shown is that previously designated as b. The discontinuous ribs o f the welt fit closely the ace in which the edge of the welt is laid, t is space being the angle between the shoe bottom and the stitch-receiving rib w' of the innersole; the edgeA part of the shoe uppler having been brought into this angle in t` e lasting operation. y represents the stitches of the inseam, and it' will be observed that these stitches pass from the groove lw through the full thickness of the welt at the base of the rib o, whereb it is apparent ,that the formation of the we t in the manner described does not weaken it in the least. Eachof the short discontinuous ribs of .the welt occup the position here indicated, while thoseV lips .a of the alternating ooves which come next to the upper.- are 'ent to conform to the welt-receiving angle of the shoe bottom, whereby the stitches ofy the inseam pass through them also, and they also furnish material to'give a secure anchorage for the stitches in the welt. The outer lips of the same vgrooves will be bent down against the inner lips Lin the operation ofthe stitching machine,l and add strength to the stitch anchorage. If subsequently these outer lips should spring outward, their extreme edges might be trimmed oif in the subsequent inseam trimming oper-ation, b-ut if so the amount of leather converted into waste by that means would be an inconsiderable frac tionof the saving effected by the invention.

The amount of' saving which is effected according to my present invention is exactly the same as explained in m prior application before referred to, an consists in the difference between the width of the stri-p a shown in Fig. 1, and the sum of the over-all widths of the two welts which are cut therefrom, suchover-al1 widths being measured from the tip of the Vshaped rib at one edge of the welt to the opposite'square edge. The

l inner edge of the welt, by which I mean the edge formed by the subdividing cut, is given such firmness by means ofthe fie quent ribs o `(or correspondingly k) that it correctly guides thewelt in bein applied by the aid of the welt guide of t inseam stitching machine. That is, such ribs have greater strength and firmness than the thins (or correspondingly ner separated li s t), so` that the ri s overcome any tendency which might exist for the softer and thinner lips to crumple and-curlup against the welt guide; while the frequency of the ribs and the shortness of the spaces between them causes at least one rib always to be in co-action with the guide. Of course as the outer edge of the welt is squareyn trimming of that edge is necessary, except at those parts of the shoe where the extension of the sole is required to be. trimmed down to a narrow width.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A welt having on one edge longitudigrooves of limited extent in repeated alter.-

nation, said grooves being bounded by lips which are adapted to be bent toward one another substantially into the planes of the faces of the adjacent ribs.

3. A welt having on one edge a series of discontinuous V-shaped ribs, the apices of which .are in alinement with one another approximately midway between the extended planes of the opposite faces of the welt, and V-shaped grooves intermediate and alternating with said.l ribs having alined vertices substantially midway between said faces and back of the line of said apices.

4. A wel-t having on one edge a series of discontinuous V-shaped ribs, the apices of which are lin alinement with one another approximately midway between the extended 'planes' of the opposite faces of the welt, andV V-shwped grooves intermediate and alternating with said ribs having alined vertices substantially midway between said faces and back of the line of said apices; the sidesof said ribs and grooves being respectively on approximately equal, but oppoite inclinations.

5. The method of producing complemental welts which comprises cutting in a strip of suitable material incisions of limited longitudinal extent which extend from opposite locations in opposite faces of the strip and on opposite inclinations to an intersection in the body of the strip, and forming adjacent to the ends of each. pair of incisions so made, similar but oppositely inclined incisions.

6. The method of producing complemental welts which consists in 'cutting a strip of suitable material incisions of limited lonr gitudinal extent which extend from opposite locations in opposite faces of the strip and on opposite inclinations to an intersection in the body of the strip, and forming adjacent to the ends of each pair of incisions so made, similar but oppositely inclined incisions, and cutting also transverse incisions which intersect the adjoining ends of successive pairs of inclined incisions.

In testimony whereof I have axed my signature.

HARRY LYON. 

